Hordika
by Goldenrod
Summary: When Kit and the Toa Metru return to Metru Nui, they encounter the fearsome Visorak.
1. Capture and Rescue

Disclaimer: I don't own Bionicle, only Kit.

* * *

The wind howled, the rain came as if there was no end to it, lightning flashed followed by roars of thunder, and the waves rolled. A lone craft tried to fight its way through the storm and keep itself afloat at the same time, a task easier said than done for it was not built for travel over water. Onboard, a tall brown figure slid into the wall, banging his head, but not before he passed a young human girl who was holding on with all her might to the railing to keep from being either thrown overboard or about like some of her comrades. She slipped and fell to the ground due to how slippery the seawater made it, but managed to maintain her hold. "Ok, whose bright idea was it to take this thing out into a storm?" Kit asked above the crashing of the waves and the siren the Vahki transport made as a distress signal.

"Don't ask me, ask the fire-spitter," Matau called back from the cockpit, trying to steer the thing as best as he could. "I told him this thing wasn't meant to handle storm-tossed waters, but, did he hear-listen? Oh no."

"Less talking, more driving up there, Matau," shouted Vakama.

Matau grumbled and complied while Kit gave the Toa of Fire a death glare, recalling how she and the other Toa Metru argued how going out in this storm was not only stupid, it was also very possibly suicidal. Still, the Fire Toa wouldn't hear otherwise, not even Onewa's suggestion that they send a scout to check out the situation in the city when Rahkshi were discovered running about, and they went on their way back to Metru Nui to retrieve the rest of the Matoran that were left behind. Hearing some groaning, she turned her attention to Nokama standing at the bow of the transport. All of this time, the Toa of Water was trying to use her powers to calm the waters a bit, but it was apparent that it was not as easy as it sounded. Finally, she gave up, saying that the storm was too powerful for her to control. Vakama then urged everyone to get inside the cargo hold for safety. Kit did her best to follow Onewa, Whenua, and Nuju, but the rocking of the transport made it difficult. She lost her balance, slid across the deck, and went over the railing with a scream. She suddenly stopped in mid-air and felt a strong grip on her ankle. Looking up, she saw it was Vakama just before he hauled her back onboard. Saying a quick, "Thanks," to the Toa of Fire, she rushed toward the hold, but not before noticing the biggest tidal wave yet. The transport rode the wave for a few minutes before it capsized. Kit didn't know how she managed to grab a breath of air prior to slamming into the water, but she did. Now, she had to fight her way back up to the surface before she could drown. She swam as hard as she could, but the waves tossed her around under the water. Just when she was certain her burning lungs were going to burst, she broke the surface, gasping and coughing and spitting out seawater. As she fought to keep her head above water, she called out to her friends. A hand appeared a little ways ahead of her and, fighting the raging waves, she swam toward it. She just managed to grab it when a wave sent her back under.

* * *

When Onewa awoke, he wasn't sure if he had; it was dark all around. He felt something try to move underneath him and thought he felt a familiar squishy hump of a hood. "Hey, kid, you awake?" he asked.

"Onewa? Where are you?"

"Right on top of you."

"Where are we?"

"My guess is buried under what's left of the Lhikan II. Take it easy, I'm going to get us out of here."

The Toa of Stone wrapped his arm around her waist and, with a powerful shove, he and Kit burst out of the debris. "You ok, kid?" he asked, and Kit nodded. "Well, that stunk." Hearing coughing behind them, Kit and Onewa turned and yelped at a figure shrouded in dust.

As the dust cleared, it was revealed to be Nuju. "It would appear there was an error in our transport," announced the Toa of Ice. "_Pilot_ error."

"Hey," Matau, who was trapped in debris, protested, "I was only order-taking. _Vakama_ was the one order-giving."

"No need to be critical, Matau," said Nokama as she walked to shore. "Regardless of how gracefully, we made it here."

"Whatever," the Air Toa grumbled. "Uh, hey, could somebody dig me up?" In a few powerful strokes, Whenua's earthshock drills cleared away the wreckage. "Thanks," said Matau as he brushed himself off.

"It's what I do," replied the Toa of Earth.

"Are we gonna stand around all night?" asked an approaching Vakama. "Or, are we going to rescue the Matoran?"

"Ever wonder why he needs us?" Kit muttered to no one in particular. She couldn't help but recollect on the past week, ever since they started heading back to the island city, how Vakama's behavior seemed to change. His newfound confidence now bordered on arrogance, and it scared her sometimes. It made her wonder what he was now capable of, especially where she and the others were concerned. 'I think I liked him better when he was shy and uncertain,' she said to herself.

The group walked among what was left of what was once a glorious city. Those chutes that weren't destroyed completely were broken and not functioning, green webs and a green mist were everywhere, giving the place an eerie and poisonous feeling. "What's with all the webs?" asked Matau. "Not exactly encouraging my Toa-hero spirit." A roar up ahead stopped them in their tracks. Soon it was followed by the sounds of other animals; the entire city was overrun by Rahi of all shapes and sizes. "Well, there goes the old neighborhood," commented Matau.

"It's just as I feared," said Whenua, "the Archive must've been breached."

"What all did you have in there?" asked Kit.

"Everything," replied the Toa of Earth. "Most of it dangerous."

"Rahi?" guessed Vakama.

"The Onu-Metru Archive houses a specimen of every Rahi beast ever discovered. At least, it used to."

"And the webs?"

"Visorak. Nasty creatures."

"Comin' from you, that's not good," said Onewa.

"But, what does it change?" asked the Toa of Water.

"Nothing," Vakama replied. "We go to the Coliseum, we rescue the Matoran, we leave."

"Or get pulverized," noted Whenua, which Nuju pointed out was a possibility.

"Where do we go from here, Kit?" asked Nokama, remembering that their human friend was from their future. "How exactly do we rescue all of the Matoran?"

"I don't know," the girl confessed. "I don't know anything about what's going on right now. See, in the present—your future—whenever somebody asks you about the far off past, you respond in riddles."

The Toa Metru looked to one another, wondering why they would they be so secretive about their history. Inwardly, Kit was relieved that this time she didn't have to leave out anything and feel guilty. "C'mon all of you, we faced the Makuta and won," said the Fire Toa. "I really doubt a few crusty relics are going to give us much trouble. Agreed?" The others either voiced or nodded their agreement nervously when asked, and Vakama beckoned them to follow him, only to be hit by something and he stopped moving. Before anyone could make any sense of what was happening, one by one, they were all paralyzed, unable to move. Then, like dominoes, they fell into a pile on top of each other.

Kit landed atop of Nuju, "Did I hurt you?" The Toa of Ice shook his head and Vakama asked if everyone was ok, his voice sounding a little crushed considering he was near the bottom.

"Yeah, we're right behind you fearless leader, literally," answered Matau.

"Bickering won't get us out of this, Matau," Nokama chided.

"No," the Air Toa agreed, "but think-talkin' before charging straight into a trap might have."

"If you have something to say, Matau, say it," growled Vakama, but Matau refused.

Kit was about to tell them to knock it off when some scuttling was heard nearby. "What's that?" Onewa took the question out of her mouth.

There was silence until Nuju announced, "We'll soon find out."

Twin red glowing eyes pierced through the mist before a chorus of screeches sounded. Then, the mist parted to reveal arachnid-like creatures with huge mandibles. "Let me guess. Visorak?" Matau asked Whenua.

"Yeah," answered the Earth Toa, "or in their tongue, 'the stealers of life'."

"Do they even have tongues?" asked Onewa in a futile effort to lighten the mood of their predicament. "All I see are teeth."

The Visorak screeched at their catch, revealing their saw-like fangs, their eyes gleaming with delight. "Vakama, what do we do?" Nokama asked, but the Toa of Fire remained silent, not sure of what they could do.

When one of the Visorak approached her, Kit's shaking increased. As much as she wanted to, she couldn't even move a finger. "Whenua, you never mentioned the Visorak were giant spiders," she said through clenched teeth.

"You never asked," said the Toa of Earth, "and what does that have to do with anything?"

"Because, I hate spiders," the girl replied as the metallic spider picked her up in its mandibles and carried her away.

* * *

Soon, the Toa Metru and their human friend were taken to the Coliseum, where, while they were still under the effect of whatever paralyzed them, they were wrapped in cocoons and left to hang in the air, far above the ground. The cocoons had barbs inside that jabbed at them as they struggled, which turned out to be a big mistake. Nuju figured out that the barbs secreted some kind of venom that was injected into them as they fought to free themselves and they could feel it coursing through them. Whenua looked around at the others to see how they were holding up. His fellow Toa seemed ok, considering, but Kit looked like she was fighting to remain conscious. Then he noticed that two Visorak, a blue one and a red one, were fighting. The blue one was tossed off of the web and, as it fell, its brethren screeched and snapped their mandibles in a jovial manner. "That's encouraging," he muttered sarcastically as he thought of the spider falling to its death, as they soon would.

"Well, fire-spitter, we can't say you didn't show us the city," said Matau. "Course, we can say that you got us captured, poisoned, and, seeing as I don't think-believe we've been brought up here for the view, imminently smashed-dashed." The Toa of Fire winced at the Air Toa's comment and Onewa tried to speak through the webbing of his cocoon, but everything came out muffled. "He agrees," said Matau.

"This is not Vakama's fault," Nokama scolded, coming to Vakama's defense.

At this point, Kit was just so out of it she couldn't even make out what the Toa of Fire was saying. She heard him say something about him leading them as best as he could and wishing he was better at it, but that was all. Though she had stopped trying to fight her way out of her cocoon due to lack of strength, the barbs still bit into her as she kept still. Her head pounded like crazy, her body hurt all over, and she was just too darn weak to care anymore. Sudden movement from Vakama's cocoon made her perk up a bit, and his arm ripped itself out. Only, the limb was so strange and horrifying-looking, Vakama couldn't believe it was really his. Soon, the remaining Toa went through the same process, their cocoons glowed before they were ripped apart and they fell, except for Vakama, who hung by his foot, which got caught on a thread of webbing. "Nokama! Kit! Help!" he called before a spasm overtook him. Kit weakly called his name as she and the Toa of Water still hung in their cocoons, unable to do a thing. Vakama shuddered as he felt his body change. "I'm sorry I let you all down . . . again," he apologized, and the thread snapped. Nokama and Kit gasped in horror as they watched the Fire Toa plunge toward certain death before their cocoons finally burst an instant later. The Water Toa looked frantically for the others, but the clouds obscured her vision. Finally, she spotted Onewa, at least what she believed was him, below her. A light suddenly appeared from nowhere and the Toa of Stone was gone. Hearing a whirring sound, she looked to see another light, felt something grab her, and the next thing she knew she was flying.

The light kept her from seeing the face of her rescuer, but it did enable her to spot another figure hidden amongst the clouds. "Kit!" she cried, and the figure descended into a power-dive. Once she was close enough, Nokama grabbed onto the girl, and the flyer took to the sky to rejoin some others who had also rescued the Toa. Now assured that her brothers were safe, the Toa of Water turned her attention to Kit, who hung limply in her arms and was unresponsive to what was happening. She was about to check her heartlight when she remembered humans don't have heartlights. Instead, she settled for placing her hand on her chest and felt a heartbeat. 'At least she's alive,' she thought with relief. That was when she saw her hand, deformed; the shape and the fingers were wrong. Remembering what happened to Vakama's right arm, she looked to find hers was practically the same story. In place of her hand was what appeared to be a weapon of some kind. "What am I?" she asked in a low voice. "More than you were," replied the stranger that carried her, "and, yet, less."

* * *

Roodaka gazed at the little red stone she held in her hand, carved out from its far larger counterpart that stood in the middle of the room. "Rest, my Makuta. Sleep, and know that as you do, I draw close to awakening you," she said as she placed it into the middle of her chest. Privately, she admitted to herself that it was rather a shame that she couldn't 'study' the Toa's ally—a human, Makuta told her—more. She wanted to keep her alive in her cocoon, trapped in wakeless sleep for eternity, as a trophy of conquest. But, her telepathic message from Makuta specifically stated that the little one was to suffer the same fate as the Toa Metru—mutation, then death. Though, that didn't stop questions from forming in her head: Where did her species reside? What sort of effect, or effects, would the Hordika venom have on her? She pushed the curiosity out of her mind and went back to her 'reporting' to the stone, as if in belief that through it Makuta could hear her inside his protodermis prison on the Great Barrier.

* * *

When Matau awoke he found himself alone and near a fountain, a clue that he was in Ga-Metru. He called to the others, but no response came. "Darn Vakama," he muttered to himself. "Why'd we ever listen to him?" Suddenly, the Toa of Air tripped, fell, and saw his reflection in the water of the fountain. What he saw made him gasp; an ugly monster looked back at him. Unable to believe what he was seeing, he splashed the water, hoping there was some kind of mistake. However, the monstrous image was still there—along with five others. Matau lashed out immediately, warning them to stay back, until one of them, the blue one, spoke in an all-too-familiar voice. "Nokama?" he wondered.

"Matau, it's alright," assured the Toa of Water.

"Alright!?" exclaimed Matau. "You call _this_ 'alright'?"

"We're all here," Nokama continued as she placed her remaining hand on his shoulder, "We'll find a way. Together."

Matau just looked down at the ground, then angrily turned to Vakama, who had stayed silent this whole time. "I don't hear you saying that, smelt-head. What's the problem-matter? Too busy cooking up another master thought-plan?"

"I'm through making plans," the Fire Toa snarled.

"Well, that's the first happy-good thing I've heard since I've been ugly-hideous," Matau retorted.

Nuju, having enough of this bickering, growled as he shoved himself between the two, "Regardless of how we look, it might better if we use our energy to find out why we've become . . . whatever it is we are."

"Yes," Nokama agreed, "the sooner we do that, the sooner we can rescue the Matoran."

"And, how are we going to do that when we're the ones who need quick-saving?" asked Matau, and a voice presented itself.

"If you are wise, if you wish to be your old selves again, you will listen." The Toa looked up at one of the statues to find a small red figure that one would describe as a Turagafied Rahkshi. At first, the Toa thought, because of the Rahkshi resemblance, that this creature might be an enemy, then they figured if it was giving them reasonable advice, perhaps it could be an ally.

Matau looked back at the group, confused, and counted. "Where's Kit?" he asked with a hint of fear. Did she not make it? Hearing the Toa's question, the creature above beckoned for them to follow. It led them deeper amidst the statues and pointed. Kit was lying on the ground, being tended to by another Rahkshi-like being that was blue. The Toa came closer to get a better look and the creature stepped aside. Kit was unconscious, breathing hard, sweat beaded her face, and the veins that could be seen in her hands and lower arms seemed to be very green. "What's bad-wrong with her?" asked Matau.

"She's very sick, and has a fever," Nokama replied. "That's all I can tell, for now."

"Do you think it could have something to do with that venom?" Onewa inquired. "Maybe she's being affected differently than us?"

After giving it some thought, Nuju figured Onewa might actually be on to something. "It is possible that her fully organic physiology could somehow be hindering the venom's progress in her system, maybe even trying to fight it off completely," he theorized. All of the Toa silently hoped and prayed that their friend would get better.

* * *

Author's Note: Just for safety's sake, so to speak, I've decided to take the precaution of rating this story "T" for violence in future chapters. However, if you, the readers, believe a "K+" rating will suffice, please let me know after reading said chapters.


	2. Mutation

Disclaimer: Just in case, I'm putting this up for a scene from a movie that takes place in this chapter (I couldn't resist :)). Read and find out which scene and what movie.

* * *

The hours passed and the sun was preparing to set. "I still don't understand why she hasn't transformed yet," the blue Rahkshi-being said to her red counterpart.

"Perhaps it's like Nuju said," replied the red one. "Maybe her physiology makes her somewhat, if not completely, immune to the venom's effects."

"I personally hope it's the latter."

"Just don't get your hopes up too high, sister. There's still the possibility."

The blue one nodded in understanding and the red one departed. It was then that Kit regained consciousness to find the blue Rahkshi creature beside her and gasped. "Calm yourself, young one," it said gently. "I will not harm you." Reluctantly, Kit allowed it to usher her back down; she felt so weak and sick, she couldn't fight back even if she wanted to.

"Who and what are you? Where am I? Where are the others?" she mumbled.

"My name is Gaaki, a Rahaga," the Rahkshi-like being answered with a gentle smile. "You're in Ga-Metru, and your friends are nearby and well. How are you feeling?"

"A little better than I have been all day," Kit replied, after giving it some thought.

"Good," Gaaki nodded, "perhaps tomorrow you'll be strong enough to be moved, if not walk."

After taking note that the girl's condition did seem to be improving with her veins not looking as green, her breathing more steady, and her fever had gone down a little, the Rahaga decided to take leave to let her rest some more and Kit closed her eyes. However, they snapped wide open an instant later; something wasn't right. Her heart rate had increased for no apparent reason and her hands were quivering. "Gaaki," she called to the Rahaga.

Seeing that the kid seemed to be in distress, Gaaki asked, "What is it?"

"Something's happening," Kit whispered.

She instinctively clenched her hands into fists and, without warning, a spasm made her arch her back. She writhed in pain as violent shudders took over her body, making her thrash about. Fearing and knowing what was happening, Gaaki called for the Toa. They were there in a flash and watched in horror as Kit began to glow, change and groan in pain, unable to do a thing to help her. On the other end, Kit could feel muscles expanding and her body being painfully changed, but the worst part was what she could feel happening inside her head. Her mind felt it was being torn apart from the inside and put back together, but not in the way it was before. The pain for that was so great, there was no describing it. Finally, it was over and she collapsed, breathing heavily. Whenua and Nokama were about to move to go see her when Kit began to get up on her hands and knees. Turning to the Toa, she asked, "How bad is it?" When no answer came, she looked into a nearby puddle, and froze. Very, very light tannish-brown colored fur covered her face, arms and hands; her palms were calloused and rough, like the pads under a cat's paws; her round pupils were narrow slits; cat ears popped out through her hair; and her teeth, namely her canines, were fangs.

When she bowed her head, Gaaki approached and placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, Kit," she comforted.

"It's not that," the girl replied. After glancing at the Toa, she whispered in the Rahaga's ear.

The next thing the Toa knew, Gaaki asked them to excuse her and Kit for minute and the girl disappeared behind a statue. "Ready?" asked Gaaki to Kit. The answer must've been yes for then the Rahaga gave a mighty pull. When Kit came back, there didn't seem to be much difference.

"What was that all about?" Onewa asked.

As if in answer, a tail revealed itself from behind her. The red Rahaga watched from close by with sad eyes; the human's physiology didn't spare her from such a cruel fate, only postponed it.

* * *

Later, after dark, the Toa and Kit gathered near the fountain, all talking at once about one thing or another. "Brothers, we must be patient," Nokama said, bringing them to silence as she saw the red figure from earlier come near.

"Keetongu" it said.

"The Key to Nongu?" asked Onewa, confused.

"Keetongu," the stranger chuckled, "is a most honorable creature and skilled in the ways of venoms, not to mention our only hope to stand against the Visorak horde. If you are to be the Toa and human you once were, it is Keetongu you must seek."

"But, what are we now?" asked Nokama as she gazed at her weapon-arm.

"Hordika venom courses within you," the stranger replied. "If it is not neutralized it will take root, and Hordika you will be forever."

"Like you?" inquired Nuju, a bit nervous.

"I am a Rahaga. Norik is my name," Norik corrected, and introduced his fellow Rahaga: Gaaki, Bomonga, Kualus, Pouks, and Iruini.

"Rahaga, can you take us to this Keetongu?" asked Nokama. Iruini burst out laughing, but stopped when Norik gave him a sharp look. "I don't understand," said the Water Toa.

"What Iruini so inappropriately suggests is that this will be difficult," Norik explained. "We Rahaga have come to Metru Nui in search of Keetongu ourselves, and there are those that . . . well, doubt his existence entirely."

"And, you?" asked Kit.

"I believe," Norik responded with sincerity in his eyes.

"Then, so must we," said Nokama, receiving a chuckle from Matau, who asked if they should talk about a plan.

"What do you say, mask-melter?" he glared at Vakama, who was experimenting with his new tool.

"I say we came to Metru Nui to rescue the Matoran, not go on safari," the Fire Hordika answered.

"And, you have a way to do this?" Norik bounded over to him. "Perhaps using your new Hordika powers . . .," and he blew out the small flame that Vakama managed to conjure, "powers you have not yet learned to use."

With a frustrated growl, Vakama slammed the rip in the pipe shut and walked off. Norik offered to go talk to him and followed. No one noticed that Kit also walked off, toward the direction of the fountain. Though the girl knew cats could see very well in the dark, she was still, at first, a little surprised that she could see so well in the dark. She stared at the image in the water, hoping that somehow it would change and show her a human kid. But, a human-cat hybrid creature just stared back at her and, feeling anger rise up inside of her, she splashed the water with her hands. 'That's not me. I'm a kid, not a monster,' she said to herself as she continued to splash the water, as if trying to beat the creature that looked back at her. Finally, she gave up and walked back to the campsite.

"Where've you been?" asked Whenua when he saw the girl.

"At the fountain," she replied, then a light from a fireflyer caught her eye and she chased after it.

The Toa and Rahaga watched in wonder. "I honestly don't know whether to find this disturbing or cute," Nokama said with a smile. Like a kitten, Kit leaped after the insect trying to catch it in her hands.

Shortly after the fireflyer flew too high for her to jump after, Norik arrived, alone. "Vakama has a lot on his mind," he said. "We must give him time to find his destiny."

"Yeah, but what if finds a really bad one?" Onewa asked.

Unable to think of an answer for that, Norik simply pointed out that they had to start their search for the legendary Keetongu immediately, to which Matau was more than happy to oblige. "But, where to start?" asked Nuju.

"Somewhere you know well," Norik chuckled, and he led the way.

* * *

The red eyes of a Boggarak spotted the group and recognized them as the ones Roodaka wanted. It vibrated a strand of the web it stood on, sending a signal to its brethren to come. Within moments, reinforcements arrived and they planned an ambush.

* * *

As they walked, Kit suddenly froze and stiffened. Her ears twitched this way and that, her senses were on the alert, and she could smell a scent in the air that did not belong to any of the Toa or Rahaga—a scent that inexplicably made the hairs on her spine stand on end. Bomonga noticed and was about to speak when she motioned for him to remain silent. After a few tense moments, he tried again and whispered, "What's wrong?"

"Do you hear that?" asked the girl. The Rahaga shook his head, and Kit answered, "Something's here." Suddenly, quicker than the eye could follow, Kit grabbed the Rahaga with a yell of, "Get down!" and leaped to the side, just barely avoiding a Rhotuka spinner.

The squad of Boggarak showed themselves and surrounded the group. The Toa Hordika and Kit in turn formed a circle around the Rahaga. One Boggarak screeched at Kit and the girl answered with a glare and a mountain lion-like scream. The spider didn't even flinch, used to beasts making threatening sounds, and it pounced. To the Visorak's slight surprise, Kit also leaped into the air and knocked it back down to the ground. By now, Kit and the Toa were engaged in battle with every member of the small squad. However, during the fight, the Toa and Kit learned that their elemental, mask, and energy powers weren't responding to their commands. Thankfully, the Rahaga instructed them on how to use their new Rhotuka launchers. Although, being left without such a device, Kit was left to use nothing but her hands, feet, and claws. One of the robot spiders charged, only to be stopped by Kit grabbing hold of its mandibles. Girl and spider struggled and, certain of its victory, the blue Visorak's eyes gleamed with evil anticipation. However, in one swift movement, Kit twisted the spider's head. There was a loud crack, the Boggarak screeched in pain, and it fell to the ground. Without a second thought, Kit sprung toward the two remaining Visorak. She leaped onto one's back and, before the spider could do anything about it, she spear-handed her claws through the armor at the back of its neck. Like its fallen comrade, the spider screeched as she ripped out a bundle of cords and it too fell, its eyes dark. As for the last Visorak, the last thing it saw was a look of ferocity like none it had seen before in the small one's eyes.

Kit gazed at her handiwork and let out a roar, a roar of triumph over an enemy. When she looked at the Toa Hordika and Rahaga, there was horror on their faces. "W-What's the matter?" she asked. "What are you all staring at? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

"You killed them," Nokama said in a quiet voice. Seeing the girl's confused expression, the Hordika of Water pointed to the dead Visorak.

Kit gasped in shock, "H-How? Why?"

"The last two, you ripped out some vital circuits," Pouks said after some examining, "and this one's neck is broken, between the second and third vertebrae."

Kit couldn't believe it—she was actually capable of all of that destruction? "You don't remember doing any of that?" asked Nuju.

"I do, now that I think about it," she replied, "but it's like it wasn't just me, but something else was there, too."

"It was the instinct of the beast," said Norik, "the battle had roused it." Then, deciding it was best to put the incident behind them, he insisted that they continue on their way.

* * *

Later, Matau gazed at the back of the group where Kit trudged. If he didn't know any better, he could've sworn she was purposely staying back. He slowed his pace so he was right next to her. "What's the problem-matter, Kit? You look so dark-serious," he asked.

"I can't stop thinking about what happened with those Visorak back there," she answered without even meeting his eyes. Matau nodded in understanding, figuring that what happened back there must've unnerved her far more than it did him and the others. "I can't explain it, but, back there, it felt like something else, a feeling I've never felt before, took over. Then, I felt a desire to protect my territory, and those that wouldn't leave . . ." Then, Kit turned to the Hordika of Air with desperate eyes, "Don't you get it? I _enjoyed_ it; the neck-twisting, the ripping out of vital circuits, the killing, everything."

Matau remained silent; as much as he wanted to say something, he didn't know what to say. Norik called for a halt and pointed to what lay before them. "The Great Temple?" Nuju gasped at the structure silhouetted in the rising sun.

Matau, skeptical, said, "I'm certain-sure it could've helped our old Toa-hero selves, but now?"

"We'll never find a way to change back if you keep talking like that," Onewa snapped.

"You're right, I'm sorry," the Air Hordika mockingly apologized. "I don't know what's gotten into me. Oh, that's right—some kind of Rahi-monster!"

Nokama groaned as her brother Toa put on a show of growls and slashing movements. "If you are quite done, we should go inside," Norik chided, which brought Matau's fit to a halt.

"Kit, would you not mind getting your tail out of the way," Nuju asked, annoyed. The girl glanced to discover that her new tail was twitching all over the place near the Ice Hordika's feet, forcing him to watch where he stepped to keep from stepping on it.

"Sorry," she apologized as she grabbed it, "I guess since I'm not used to having a tail, it kind of has a mind of its own." Suddenly, a grasshopper-like insect caught Kit's eye and, just like with the fireflyer, she wanted to chase it. She stopped herself, remembering that it was the animal instinct that made her so vicious earlier, but the urge to go after the little thing was too much to resist and she pounced—only to just miss the bug.

Norik noticed the girl's attempt and chuckled, "What are you doing, Kit?"

"Pouncing," she replied after a failed second try.

"If you like, I could give you some pointers," the Rahaga offered.

"You know how to pounce?"

"I know a few things."

Norik eyed Iruini nearby, "Iruini, would not mind turning around so your back is facing Kit and me?" The green Rahaga complied with a nod and went about his business while Norik whispered, "Stay low to the ground," to Kit, gently guiding her posture.

"Stay low to the ground. Check," she confirmed, then Iruini happened to glance behind him.

"What's going on?"

"A pouncing lesson," Norik answered.

"Oh, good, pouncing," said Iruini, then, eyes wide, he realized what was going on behind him. "Pouncing! Norik, you can't be serious."

Norik, however, proved he was serious by gesturing Iruini to turn back around. Once he was, Norik whispered to Kit, "Try not to make a sound."

"What are you telling her, Norik?" Iruini asked, only to discover that teacher and student disappeared amongst the rocks, as if they had never been there. "Norik? Kit?" the Rahaga asked nervously.

Suddenly, without warning, a shape sprang and pinned him to the ground. Norik, to say the least, could be heard laughing his head off, and Kit trotted back to him. "That's very good, for a first try," he praised. As the three went to join the others, Iruini mumbled under his breath that he was going to get Norik for that.

Kit then became aware of an itch in the very center of her back, but, not matter what she tried, she couldn't reach it. "Need a hand?" Gaaki asked.

"Please?" Kit inquired as she lowered herself.

As soon as the blue Rahaga started scratching the trouble spot, Kit reacted as any cat would—she slightly arched her shoulders, purred, and her tail wagged excitedly. "You see? It's not all bad," said Gaaki, earning a questionable expression from the girl. With a simple wink, Gaaki activated her rotor blades and followed her brothers toward the temple.

"Come along," called Norik as he bounded after them. "Our best chance to find Keetongu lies within the temple." He turned back to find Kit and the Hordika a way's back, as if meaning to keep their distance from the building. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

The Toa and Kit looked at each other; they all knew they could all feel it. For some reason, they felt they couldn't come any closer to the temple, and whenever they tried, each step was harder than the last. "It might be best if we wait here," said Nokama. "The Great Temple is sacred to Toa. Given what has happened to us, I'm not sure it would be right."

Norik nodded. He understood that what was happening was their Hordika sides, a corruption, was responding to the Great Temple by making the Toa and Kit very uncomfortable being anywhere near it. "I understand. Our work here will not go unnoticed. You must guard the gates. We need until tomorrow morning."

"Consider it done," Nokama agreed, and she and the others dispersed. All except Matau, who tried to suggest that they talk about the situation, but was struck down by the others. Norik shrugged and left to join the other Rahaga.

* * *

That night, Kit and the Toa stood guard at separate posts around the temple. At one point, Kit thought she saw something move in the shadows and heard something. Carefully, she crept over the ridge to get a better look, but saw and smelled nothing. 'Hphm, must be hearing and seeing things,' she said to herself, and walked away. Down below, a pair of green eyes observed the girl leaving and the red figure continued on its way toward the Great Temple, followed by a few Visorak.


	3. The Beast Within

Morning came, and Nokama called for Matau and Kit, but neither responded or could be found anywhere. 'Did something happen before they could sound the alarm?' she wondered. Suddenly, some small twigs and pebbles fell on her head. Startled, she looked up at the arch above to find a slightly embarrassed Matau looking down at her from what appeared to be a nest.

"Uh, yeah?" he called.

"What in the world are you doing up there when you should be standing guard?" asked Nokama.

"I am standing watch-guard," Matau protested as he leaped down, "while I'm create-making this." Nokama placed her hand and tool on her waist, inviting him to try again. Sighing, Matau gave in, "To tell you the truth, Nokama, I don't really know. One minute I was guard-watching, the next I suddenly feel this urge-need to nest-make."

Nokama nodded in understanding, then the two heard something a little further away. What they found was Kit scratching her claws and rubbing her head against a leaning pillar. When the girl found she was discovered, she looked at them sheepishly, "Hi?"

"And, what are you up to, Kit?" asked Nokama, already guessing the answer if Matau was any indication.

Kit looked at the pillar, back at the Toa Hordika, and back at the pillar again. "Apparently, I'm marking my territory." Seeing her friends confused expressions she explained how the felines in her world marked their territory by rubbing their faces against things and leaving claw marks. Evidently, like Matau, Kit also found herself victim to her new bestial instincts while she was supposed to be on guard.

Once they had gathered the other Toa Hordika, they headed for the Great Temple. "Did anyone see anything last night?" Nokama inquired.

"Nothing, lots of nothing," answered Whenua.

"Yep, boooring," droned Onewa.

"I don't know," said Nuju, "I found the sounds of the night fascinating."

Matau stopped and shook his head, "Riiiight. I wonder what's taking the Rahaga so long, I mean how hard is it to get directions?"

"Well, when they're to a creature that has not been seen since the time before time, hard," Nuju replied with annoyance.

"Really" Matau challenged. Nokama and Whenua told him to be patient and to take it easy, but the Air Hordika was not having any of it. "I have absolutely no patience for looking like this," he snarled as he ran his way through the group. Kit sighed with a shrug, and the group chased after him. "We've already wasted a _whole_ night," said Matau. "The way I see it, the sooner we get to the--"

The rest of his sentence was cut off when he and the others saw a sight that stopped them in their tracks—smoke bellowing out from the Great Temple. After overcoming their shared shock, the Toa and Kit rushed toward the entrance, calling to the Rahaga. Inside, it was total destruction; rubble of all shapes and sizes littered the floor. "Fan out," said Kit, and the group searched the place.

"Kit?" Nokama inquired.

Knowing what the Water Hordika meant, and bounding to the top of a fallen column, she took a whiff with her new sensitive nose and sneezed. "Nothing, just smoke and ash," she reported.

Nokama then turned to the Hordika of Ice, "Nuju, can you see anything?"

Activating his scope, Nuju scanned the area, Matoran letters identifying his fellow Hordika and Kit, but there was no sign of any of the Rahaga. Suddenly, some groaning echoed and Nuju zeroed in on the source—Norik. "There he is! He's over there!" he pointed to a pile. The others gathered around the mentioned spot and, sure enough, there was Norik, coughing weakly from the pressure on his chest and unable to get himself out.

"Stand back!" said Whenua and he got right to work with his new thumper.

The others helped clear away some more of the rubble and Norik was free. "Norik, what happened?" Onewa asked the barely conscious Rahaga. "What should we do?"

"I wish Vakama was here," said Nokama, believing he'd know what to do.

"He . . . was," Norik moaned, and everyone's blood ran cold.

'No way!' Kit thought. 'Vakama couldn't have done this.' Then, she remembered what she smelled just moments before, smoke and ash, which only occurred when there was fire, and fire was Vakama's specialty. 'Could he?'

* * *

After Norik recovered his strength, he told the team about Vakama and the abduction of his fellow Rahaga. "Vakama would never do such a thing," Nokama proclaimed. "Right?" The other Toa and Kit answered her with silence.

"You are correct, Nokama," said Norik, seeing the down look on her face. "The Vakama you know would not. He's changed, just as you all will if we do not find Keetongu. I fear Vakama has given himself completely to the beast that lurks within us all. The ancient, the primal, the parts of ourselves we like to think progress has made us forget. Hordika is its name."

"I don't think I wanna be Hordika," said Whenua fearfully.

"Me neither," said Kit.

"It's not all bad Whenua and Kit," Norik comforted, "not if you don't allow it to be. Being Hordika grants you certain gifts."

Nokama thought about it; ever since their transformation, she, the other Toa, and Kit had gained a connection to nature they never had before. On top of that, Kit's senses of vision, hearing, and smell had been increased by ten-fold, which had proven time and time again to be very handy. But then, what about Matau's nest making, or Kit's territory marking, kitten-like playfulness, and Visorak killing? 'If all of those things are these 'gifts' being Hordika has granted us,' she said to herself, 'I'd give it up to be the Toa of Water again any day.' "Assuming you're right," she said to Norik, "we must find Keetongu and rescue the Matoran before the beast overcomes us, too."

"Yes," Norik agreed, "but I must warn you, Vakama may already be beyond _anything_ even Keetongu can do."

"Well, we have to try," Matau said determinedly. "We owe the fire-spitter that much and I was kind of rough-hard on him."

"We were all hard on him, Matau," Kit corrected. "We were always worrying about how his actions affected us with no consideration about what he was going through."

"And, if you can't help him?" Norik asked.

"Leave that to me," Matau vowed darkly.

"So, back to searching," said Nuju, figuring that they were now back where they started—trying to find clues to the legendary Keetongu's whereabouts.

"We were able to translate much of the inscription before Vakama's attack," Norik corrected. "'Follow the falling tears to Ko-Metru until they reach the sky'." He pointed up and, sure enough, a rivulet of water-like protodermis flowed from one of the temple's eyes, making it look like it was crying. "It is there we will find Keetongu," Norik finished.

Kit, Matau, and Onewa took a closer look at the small stream the 'tears' made. "Liquid that flows upward?" questioned Kit as she dipped a hand in.

"It's not much of a plan, but it is one," said Onewa, and they joined the others in following the Trail of Falling Tears.

* * *

The group followed the trail for hours and managed to cover a lot of ground. As much as he himself wanted to continue, Norik called for a break once they reached the wildlands of Ga-Metru. For some reason, Onewa couldn't stop thinking about what Vakama did and how he betrayed them, and it was putting him on edge. "We'll get him back, brother," said Nokama in an effort to calm him. "We _have_ to."

"Who says we have to bring him back," the Stone Hordika snapped. "He made his choice. I say we leave him where he is and decide on a new leader."

"Hey, you take that back," Kit shoved so he was looking at her. She was feeling offended on Vakama's part and that Onewa had taken his statement too far.

"Never," Onewa refused.

"I said take it back!"

"No!"

With surprising speed and strength, Kit rammed into Onewa and the two tumbled down a small gully. The others peered over the edge just in time to find them shaking their heads to clear away the stars that danced in front of their eyes. "You little . . ." Onewa snarled and charged, sending the girl into the wall. But, Kit was back on her feet in an instant and went right back into the fray, dodging Onewa's Rhotuka spinners and claw club. Norik and the remaining Toa Hordika reached the bottom just in time to hear Onewa say, "Hey, let go of my leg."

"Anything you say," Kit snarled as she used all of her strength to throw him against the wall.

As the two continued to fight, the others watched on in horror; this was getting way out of hand. Whereas Onewa tried using his spinner powers and brute force, Kit was more agile and her new bestial instincts made her karate skills all the more vicious and dangerous. At one point, Onewa attacked Kit, sending her flying, but the girl lithely landed in a fighting stance. Judging from the surprised look on his face, the Stone Hordika didn't expect her to do that. "Don't you know that cats always land on their feet?" Kit smirked before taking her turn.

"We have to stop them before they kill each other," Norik said above the roaring, hissing, snarling, and screaming.

"But how?" asked Nuju. "Look at them, if we step in to interfere, they could turn on us."

"Take that," Kit growled as she side-kicked Onewa in the stomach. The Hordika of Stone staggered back a bit.

"Onewa, Kit, stop it!" Nokama called, but Onewa was deaf to her plea as he charged at Kit. Kit, however, flipped him onto his back and held him there until he pushed her to the ground. He charged again, but Kit used his momentum against him to flip him over her. Although, she didn't count on how quickly he would recover and found herself tackled to the ground and he struggled to hold her there while Kit fought to get him off. Without really thinking about it, she bit into his arm hard, her fangs sinking into his exposed flesh. Onewa cried out in pain and his grip slackened just enough for her to buck him off. Now, it was Onewa's turn to be pinned to the ground, trying to keep Kit's claws away from him.

"Kit!" Norik called out to her, and she looked toward him. "Look at yourself. Look at what you're about to do."

Something in Norik's voice seemed to get Kit to come to her senses, and, indeed, she saw what she was positioned to do. In a flash, she scooted off of Onewa and ran to the edge of a nearby stream. Nokama was about to go see her when Norik grabbed her arm and shook his head. Apparently, Kit wanted and needed some time to herself, and the team needed a break.

* * *

A little while later, Onewa made his way to the stream. Kit was still there, looking like she hadn't even budged an inch with her arms hugging her legs and head bowed down. When she heard him coming, she turned to look at him with ashamed eyes, then turned back to her silent musing. The Hordika of Stone sat down next to her and asked, "You ok?"

"I'm scared."

"Look, kid, if it's about what happened earlier, don't worry about it. It was my fault; I was being a first-class idiot."

"It's not just that. It's, well . . . during the whole thing, I wanted to rip your throat out."

Onewa gazed upon the young human Hordika. With those claws and considering how close they were to his neck, he had no doubt that she was perfectly capable of such a feat. He recalled that the other day, she explained to the others her theory that her tendency to go for the neck must lay in the hunting habits of a lot of Earth felines, especially one she called a mountain lion whose specialty was dropping onto its prey from above and delivering a bite to the back of the neck that broke it. Kit, meanwhile, took notice of the bandage on his arm where she bit him.

"How's your arm?"

"A little tender, but it'll be ok."

"Sorry."

"Don't be; I deserve it."

Kit turned her attention back to the water. Onewa placed his hand on her shoulder and said, "It could be worse. You could've not listened to Norik when he called to you." Kit looked at him and gave a small smile, knowing he was trying to make her feel better. Suddenly, her ears slightly perked and she turned her head toward the way they came. "What's wrong?" Onewa asked, not liking the look of this. "What is it?"

"Trouble," Kit said quietly, then turned to the Stone Hordika. "We have to warn the others," and the two dashed back to camp.

* * *

The Visorak watched and waited. When the signal was given, they would spring all at once on the Toa Hordika, Rahaga, and human who sat gathered at a fire. Finally, the signal sounded and they pounced—only to find they were all dummies made of rock and leaves. Before they could react, they were struck by Rhotuka spinners. Some were turned into frozen statues of ice, some sent into the river by powerful jets of water and cyclones, and the rest fell victim to a crevasse that formed in minutes.

"Did you see the looks on their faces?" Matau laughed.

"They never saw it coming," said Onewa.

"Quickly, we must hurry," Norik urged.

"Ow! Hey!" Kit cried out, "Someone stepped on my tail."

"That was likely-probably me, Kit, sorry," Matau apologized, recalling that he thought he felt something furry under his foot.

* * *

The group, so far, managed to cover more ground and lost another squad of Visorak back at a bridge. Now, at the border between Ga-Metru and Po-Metru, they decided to take another quick rest. It was then that Kit and the Toa Hordika noticed the full moons above and a strange sensation seemed to take over. "Look at the moons," Nokama said, entranced. A chorus of Kavinika howls broke the silence of the desert plain.

"Anybody but me getting this strange feeling?" asked Nuju.

"Man, I feel like I just want to roar my head off," Kit said with a smile as she tensed her shoulders with anticipation.

A minute of silence passed, then Kit let out the scream-like roar of a mountain lion to the moons. The Toa Hordika joined her with their own calls, adding on to the sounds of the night. Norik watched and listened the whole time, enjoying the sight. The howling lasted for only a few minutes, and the group quieted down. "Boy, those full moons can really make one act-do thought-crazy things," commented Matau.

"Get real, Matau," Whenua said, "that's just a myth."

"Oh really?" leered Kit. She leaped on him and the two wrestled on the ground, laughing. Unlike earlier, this fight was more playful than physical, much to everyone's relief. Nokama found herself unable to stop a laugh at the sight. Whenua got Kit in a headlock, from which she managed to pull free, and chased him a little before tackling him with a "Gotcha!"

After a little more rolling and tumbling like cubs, Kit had the Hordika of Earth's back pinned to the ground. "Ok, ok, I give up," laughed Whenua, and Kit got off. Everyone joined in the laughter and Nuju smiled; the tension from the past few days seeming to just melt away a bit.

* * *

A day that felt like an eternity passed and the sands of the desert changed into frozen protodermis as the group journeyed into Ko-Metru. Soon, the trail of tears led them to a strange and wondrous sight. It was a tower of ice that did indeed make the tears look like they were reaching for the sky. Matau, the first to get inside, called to the others, "Quick-hurry you guys! It's amazing! It's Keetongu!" However, when they reached the chamber, it was empty.

"You were saying?" asked Kit.

"Ok, so I announced-spoke too soon," Matau defended.

"Don't be so quick to judge, Matau and Kit," Norik laughed. With a sigh, Matau joined the others as they approached a pool in the center in the cavern. They couldn't help but look on in awe at the sight around them. "We are sorry to disturb your rest, noble one," Norik greeted, "but the duty of these heroes requires that they ask for your help." The team waited, but there was nothing but silence.

"Ok," said Matau, "well, we'd much-like to stay and talk-chat, but we gotta go."

Suddenly, the chamber rumbled and shook and, in the pool before them, a formation of ice pillars of different levels surfaced. "Whoa, is everyone seeing this?" asked Onewa. When the rumbling stopped, everyone noticed that atop the structure sat a giant figure. A blue light ignited as it opened its only eye and looked upon the assembled group before it.

'For a Rahi, he sure reminds me a lot of a Chinese monk,' Kit thought to herself.

"Toa," the creature said in a thunderous voice.

"Keetongu," Norik greeted. The giant's eye fell upon Kit and he spoke in a language no one understood. Except, Norik, that is. "He wants you to come a little closer. Apparently, he's never seen a human before, even it is a Hordika." Reluctantly, she came to the edge of the pool and Keetongu looked her over from his post. After he finally nodded his approval, he spoke again and Norik translated, "He wishes to know why we have come." Everyone, knowing this would take a little while, took seat on the ground and Nokama relayed their story about their mission, return to Metru Nui, Vakama's betrayal, and their journey to find him.

"And, then we were chased by the Visorak, all of which is why we came here, and why we need your assistance. Willyou help us get Vakama back?"

"No," replied Keetongu, causing a good number of the group to feel crestfallen.

"Well, thanks just the same," said Onewa as he began to get up, "we'll be goin' then."

Whenua, however, put a hand on his shoulder as Kit placed her tail in front of him with an, "Oh no, we're not," and pointed with her tail toward Keetongu, who was speaking again.

"Keetongu cannot start a battle on your behalf," Norik translated, "but, he _can_ aid those loyal to the Three Virtues. In fact, doing so is sworn duty."

'Wow,' Kit thought; this guy's job was to help those who were loyal to the Three Virtues?

"So, he'll transform-change us back into our handsome-good looking Toa-hero selves?" Matau asked, thinking that the nightmare was almost over.

But, Keetongu simply replied, "No."

Before anyone could ask, Norik immediately caught on to what the Rahi's game was. "Keetongu sees with one eye what we have missed with all of ours. If you are to save Vakama, you must _use_ your new forms and abilities, not be rid of them."

"So, we've travel-come all this way," said Matau, feeling his frustration building, "just to discover-find out we didn't have to travel-come all this way!"

"Keep it down!" Kit shouted at him. "I'm standing right next to you, you know."

Keetongu began making strange noises that was soon recognized as laughter. "He thinks it's funny, too," Norik laughed.

Matau sarcastically agreed, then added under his breath, "That's what I was thinking."

Keetongu began to speak again, and Norik translated, "But, your story—and devotion to your friend—has touched Keetongu. He finds your quest worthwhile." Keetongu spoke again, holding out his hand.

"And . . .?" asked Kit when Norik failed to interpret.

"And, he would like to offer us his help," the Rahaga deciphered.

The group stood up, cried, "Unity!", and gathered in a circle to put their fists together.

"Norik?" Nokama invited.

"I'd be honored," Norik said as he joined the circle.

"You too, big guy," encouraged Matau to Keetongu.

"I guess we're all in this together now," said Kit, and their newest ally reached and added his fist to the others. Now came the fun part—launching an attack on the Coliseum and getting the Toa of Fire back.


	4. The Battle for Metru Nui

That night, at the Coliseum, Vakama summoned a flame with his blazer claw for what must've been the fiftieth time. He finally figured out how to make it work a long time ago, now all that remained was for the others to arrive. He personally wished they'd just hurry up; he was getting impatient. Suddenly, a booming sound was heard, but, before he, Sidorak, and Roodaka could determine its source, an explosion occurred in the arena and six figures could be seen through the haze walking in. The Toa Hordika and Kit had come. Nokama called out the Toa of Fire. Vakama hopped down onto a spire and replied, "You've made a grave mistake coming here!"

"Nice to see you, too," Kit greeted sarcastically, her sensitive ears catching the sound of an annoyed growl.

"We came here to save you," said Whenua.

"The only ones you can save now are yourselves," said Vakama, and he ordered them to bow down and swear their allegiance to him and to Sidorak.

"And if we don't?" Kit challenged, feeling the bestial urge to just go in after the traitorous Toa for a brief moment before her human intellect fought it down.

"I will make you," answered the Fire Hordika. He tore off the point of a spire and threw it like a javelin. When it struck, the entire Visorak horde spilled out from the arena doors, instantly surrounding the Toa.

While the Toa Hordika readied their spinners and Kit grabbed hold of Nuju's shoulders, Roodaka observed from above. 'So, that's the Hordika venom's effect on . . . humans,' she thought, taking note of the girl's animalistic appearance.

"Uh, Nokama?" Onewa asked nervously, considering all the surrounding Visorak were also almost ready to launch their spinners.

"Now!" shouted the Water Hordika. "Let's go."

The Toa Hordika launched their spinners, having them catch onto their tools, thus carrying them into the air. Vakama also gave the spiders the order to fire and spinners zoomed through the air. "Hey, wait for me!" called Onewa, who was the last to launch and was now spinning out of control in mid-air. Kit and the others dodged them and landed on a ledge above a doorway—all except Matau.

"Catch you guys soon-later!" the Hordika of Air called to them as he continued on his way up.

"Where is Matau going?" asked Nokama, surprised; his departure from the group was not part of the plan at all.

However, that didn't matter at the moment; they had Visorak to take care of and, though outnumbered, the Toa launched spinner after spinner. Then, the hairs on the back of Kit's neck bristled as her newfound sixth sense warned her of something. She looked around and discovered that some of the spiders were trying to take them from behind. "Jump!" she called to the others and they all leaped off just in time, right in front of the entire horde. The battle for Metru Nui was now officially on. Nokama shouted a warning to Whenua, but by the time he saw what she was talking about it was almost too late. A Visorak got on top of him, its teeth gnashing. Seeing he was in trouble, Kit tried to get to him, but Visorak after Visorak blocked her way, forcing her to slash them down with her claws. Thankfully, Whenua was able to wrestle enough room to smash his thumper into the spider.

Kit, meanwhile, thought of where Matau was headed and where Vakama was. 'Crazy airhead,' she thought to herself, 'he's going to need help if he's really going where I think he's going.' She took off like a shot toward the doorway into the tower, either shoving or slashing away any Visorak that tried to stop her. Just as she reached the elevator, a tremor shook the ground violently. She would've gone back to investigate if the dinging sound from the elevator hadn't caught her attention.

* * *

Roodaka and Sidorak casually walked out of the elevator. Then, thinking she heard something, she looked behind her, but saw nothing but the still open doors of the elevator. "I must be hearing things," she said to herself, unaware of how wrong she was.

* * *

"Phew," Kit breathed, "close one." She had held onto a shaft cover above the elevator just before the doors opened, flipped into the elevator, then jumped onto the ceiling just before Roodaka turned around. Now, she was on her way to the balcony. She was halfway there when the elevator shuddered. "What the heck?" she wondered, then yelped when dents suddenly appeared on the ceiling and she heard a familiar screech.

* * *

The hatch slammed to the floor and a red Visorak, Vohtarak, jumped in only to look around in bewilderment. There was no one and nothing in the elevator, but it could've sworn the human Hordika was inside. "Hello," a voice from above greeted. It looked up and there was Kit on the roof. "And goodbye," she waved and sliced through the cable with her claws, sending both the car and the spider inside down the many floors below and the Visorak's screech echoed throughout the chamber. Kit held onto the cable, hanging in mid-air, until she heard a dull crash. Then, she started climbing to the next set of doors; with the elevator now out of commission, she would have to take the stairs. She finally reached the doors and, using her tail for balance, she stood on the ledge of the floor and applied all of her Hordika strength to force them open. Once she got through, she saw a sight that made her heart stop—Matau falling. By the time she got to the window post, it was far too late for her to do anything. She felt sick to her stomach and the strength in her legs just left her. Head bowed and on her knees, she could feel tears beginning to form behind her closed eyelids. Her hand suddenly squeezed into a fist so hard her claws threatened to pierce into her palm, but she didn't care if they did. Her sorrow changed into a rage that filled her heart and seemed to make the tears that once threatened to fall evaporate away. There was only one reason why Matau was falling to his death, "Vakama!" In a flash, she ran up the stairs, certain of where she would find the traitor. Three Visorak charged toward her, but she kept coming with no intention of stopping or slowing down. In fact, their appearance just seemed to fuel her fury. "You junkyard rejects, out of my way!" she roared as she slashed at them with her claws. She continued on her way up the steps, leaving three dead robot spiders in her wake. Because of her anguish, she was not at all aware of Vakama's call to Matau, or Matau's rescue.

* * *

Vakama and Matau ran down the stairs toward the arena, considering the elevator was down for some odd reason. Suddenly, Matau tripped over his own feet, fell to the floor, and skidded towards the center of the room. "Matau, are you alright?" Vakama called to him.

"Let's just speak-say I've had soft-better landings," Matau replied, before the floor underneath him gave way and he disappeared from view. Vakama was at the hole in an instant, unaware that he was being watched.

* * *

Kit kept to the shadows while still keeping the Hordika of Fire in her sights, eyeing him like a predator that had found its target. Arriving just after Matau's fall, she was totally unaware that he was still alive. Seeing this as her chance, she pounced. But, somehow, Vakama just barely managed to dodge and faced her. "What was that for?" he asked. His answer was an angry snarl as the girl glared at him. "Kit?" he asked nervously, not liking what he was seeing.

"You killed him," she said quietly, then roared out, "now I kill you!" It took all of Vakama's agility to keep away from Kit's claws.

* * *

Down in the hole, Matau could hear the commotion of the fight. "Hey, Vakama, what's going on up there?" he called. When more roars answered him, he got to work trying to climb out.

* * *

"No, Kit, you don't understand," he tried to explain.

"I understand this," Kit growled, "you betrayed us and killed one your own, so now you must pay in kind."

Knowing that he had to get her to stop long enough to explain that Matau was alive, he grabbed her wrist when she took another swipe, and pinned her on her front side to the ground. Kit roared and thrashed as he held on to her wrist and twisted her other arm behind her back, struggling to get free. "Kit, calm down, I'm not going to hurt you," Vakama pleaded. "Please, listen to me--"

His sentence, however, was cut off when Kit slipped her hand out of his grasp and slashed her claws at him. Vakama cried out as he placed his hand to his cheek, blood slowly oozing out between his fingers. Groaning, he looked at her, down in an all fours posture. When he looked into her eyes, that's when he realized it. There seemed to be some sort of bestial presence in those eyes that he'd never seen before; a part of her that had been long dormant but the Hordika venom either released, awakened it, or made it strong enough to influence her. This was not the Kit he knew or even the human Hordika she had become—this was a very deadly animal. Before he knew what was happening, Kit had him on the ground and was now going for his throat. Try as he might, Kit's claws slowly inched closer to Vakama's neck. "Kit, please stop," the Fire Hordika tried again desperately, but his plea landed on deaf ears.

Kit lifted her left hand high, intending to spear-hand her way to Vakama's throat. Her hand just started to descend, claws outstretched, when it suddenly stopped. Confused, she looked behind her to find Matau, her wrist in his hand. "That's enough, Kit," the Air Hordika said firmly. Slowly, but surely, Kit's grimacing expression changed into one of disbelief.

"Matau?" she asked, her arm relaxing.

"The one and only, as I think-believe you say," he said, slowly releasing his grip on her.

"But . . . I saw you fall," she slightly stuttered with puzzlement.

"And, Vakama-brother saved me," he winked with a smile.

Kit looked to the Hordika of Fire who confirmed it, "He purposely put himself in danger, betting that I would come back to my senses and save him."

"Mata Nui, Vakama, what happened to your mask-face?" Matau exclaimed, seeing the deep cuts on his brother Toa's cheek.

Kit laughed nervously, "That would be my fault."

The Air Hordika's eyes widened, "You did that?"

"It's nothing, I'll be fine," Vakama spoke up. "Right now we have to get down to the arena and get on with the plan."

"Plan? What plan?" Kit asked as she followed the two Toa Hordika toward the steps.

"I'll explain on the way," Vakama called, and the trio ran down the staircase.

* * *

Down at the arena, the battle raged on. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the Toa Hordika and Rahaga soon found themselves surrounded by the horde. Then, all of sudden, the spiders dispersed for no reason. "Oh . . . I don't like this," Whenua thought aloud. Seeing something, Nokama gasped and a green Rhotuka spinner sent them all to the ground. Winded, but not hurt, the heroes discovered a Kahgarak coming toward them. A tall, dark, and feminine figure walked off of its head and casually approached them. Though, none of the Toa have personally met her, they guessed from the Rahaga's description that this had to be Roodaka.

"You have something I want," the villainess said. "Your elemental powers. Earth. Stone. Ice. Water. Fire already belongs to me." Then, a thought crossed her mind: she only named five elements, and there were supposed to be six Toa in the group. "One's missing," she mused as she tapped her chin in thought.

"That would be air," said a voice. It was Vakama. "And, I caught this one sneaking around in the tower," and he shoved both Matau and Kit hard toward the others. "They're all yours, my queen."

Onewa and Whenua looked at each other in disbelief while Matau and Kit joined the line. "Thank you, Vakama," said Roodaka. "Now, about those powers. . ."

"You desire-want them so bad, take them," Matau challenged, and he launched a spinner. The other Hordika followed suit and all of the launchers hit their mark. However, not only was Roodaka still standing with red energy dancing all over her body, she also began to laugh evilly. "Alright, who fire-launched the tickle spinner?" asked Matau.

"Fools!" proclaimed Roodaka. "You, like your powers, are nothing if you are not united, and as Vakama stands with me. . ."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that," said Vakama as he readied his launcher, which was aimed right at her.

Though she didn't count on this, Roodaka still saw a loophole. "You can defeat _me_, Vakama, but not all of them," she pointed to the Visorak horde. "Strike me down and they will surely destroy you and your friends. Think about it."

Unfortunately for her, Vakama had, "And, seeing as you convinced Sidorak to put me in charge of them. . ." Then, he turned to the horde, "Get of out of here, all of you! You're free." After a momentary pause, he added, "That's an order."

To everyone's astonishment, the entire horde obeyed Vakama, clearing out of the arena. "Traitors!" Roodaka called to them.

"You can't betray someone you're enslaved to," the Fire Hordika corrected.

"And, to think I thought you could be king."

"I lead only those that _choose_ to follow. That's the difference between being a leader and a tyrant likeyou. A certain Toa taught me that."

Seeing Vakama looking toward Matau, who smiled, the Toa Hordika looked at him, puzzled. Kit, however, just gently elbowed him. Power flowed from Roodaka's heartstone and her eyes changed from blue to red, almost looking like she had become possessed; only Norik knew what it meant. "No, Vakama, don't!" he called, but it was too late. Vakama fired his spinner, it flew, and hit Roodaka square in the chest—right on her heartlight.

* * *

At the Great Barrier, the form of Makuta remained perfectly still, trapped in his protodermis cage. Suddenly, his consciousness became aware of something different and he discovered he could move his fingers a little. The red hue in his eyes returned as he began to free himself. The Toa seal on his prison had been broken.

* * *

Back at the Coliseum, Roodaka collapsed, out of exhaustion from the hits she willingly took, or from the power surge, nobody could tell. Then, a giant red and black, and too-familiar-for-comfort, hand sprouted out from her chest, picked her up, and the two disappeared. There was nothing left of Roodaka, except a small piece of stone. Curious, Vakama went to take a closer look and Norik trailed after him. The Fire Hordika just picked up the stone when Norik said, "Vakama. You have no idea what you've just done."

"Her heartstone . . ." Vakama realized. "It's Makuta's."

"Yes, carved from the same protodermis you sealed the Makuta with. In destroying it, you've broken that seal."

"I know, and set Makuta free."

Vakama took a brief moment to gaze upon the stone, and said, "For some reason, he doesn't scare me anymore." He let the stone slide off of his hand as he looked upon his fellow Toa. They were all alive and safe, that was what mattered. When his eyes landed on Kit, he said, "Kit, I--"

"You're a jerk for betraying us like that, Vakama," the girl said with a stern tone. A downcast expression formed on the Fire Hordika's face, knowing she was right, just the moment before the girl started rubbing her head against his torso affectionately and smiled. "But, I forgive you," she purred, "and, sorry about those scratches."

Vakama patted her head, assuring her it was ok. Then, the sound of clanking gears was heard and Keetongu showed up, looking like he was stomped on by a Tahtorak before he collapsed, his arms straining to hold him up. "Keetongu. Help him up," instructed Norik.

"In light of all you've given," Vakama said with effort in his voice as he helped the giant to his feet, "you owe us nothing, but, my duty requires I askwill you change back?"

Keetongu spoke, and Norik translated, "He wants to know why you would want that, being as you've made peace with the beast withinthat you might even be the better for it."

"It's our destiny to be Toa," Vakama answered, "and to keep our promise to the Matoran."

"Duty," nodded Keetongu, understanding.

"Then, so will you be," said Norik.

Kit and the Toa gathered in a circle around the giant Rahi and joined hands. Keetongu stretched out his arms and a light from within him illuminated his entire being and washed over them. They all felt a sensation like they were being cleansed, of the Hordika venom in their veins being rinsed and purged out of their bodies.

* * *

Down inside the Coliseum, the Toa Metru and Kit approached the Matoran spheres. They were all back to normal. "Now then, let's get all of you to safety," said Vakama. He touched the door panel, which opened to reveal a Ga-Matoran with a Komau, and Whenua came holding a screen board. It was then that Kit noticed something on Vakama's mask—faint claw-like scars where she scratched him. Evidently, Keetongu's power healed the wounds, but not completely. When he spotted her looking at him, she quickly looked away. The Toa of Fire, however, gestured for her attention and winked. Kit smiled, feeling a little relieved, and observed the Earth Toa checking off names.

A thought suddenly crossed her mind and she looked at her hand and mused, "It's kind of weird, in a way."

"What is?" asked Nuju.

"It was so weird being half animal, now feels weird being back to normal," the girl answered as she flexed her hand, noting the missing claws and fur. The Toa of Ice smiled while everyone else chuckled.

* * *

Soon after, everyone, the Toa, Kit, the Rahaga, and Keetongu were loading the spheres onto the only six airships that, amazingly, survived the Great Cataclysm. "Put your back into it, brothers," encouraged Matau, who was riding one the spheres that were being loaded via conveyer belt.

"Speak for himself," Kit muttered to Nokama as she rolled a sphere.

Matau, meanwhile, hopped off and admired the aircraft ahead, "Nice ship."

"Hey, Matau," said Onewa as he knocked on the Air Toa's shoulder hard, earning himself a glare. "Let's not crash it this time."

The Toa of Stone then picked up a sphere, placed it in Matau's arms, and casually walked away. "Hey," Matau called to him, but when he heard Kit sniggering, he rolled his eyes and carried the sphere to the airship. Off to the side, Vakama talked with Norik.

"Well, my friend, I guess this is it. Thank you."

"You are most welcome, Vakama. But, it's me that should be thanking you."

"I don't understand."

"It's not everyday I get to see a legend come true, you know."

Hearing some laughing, they turned to find Keetongu carrying two spheres on his shoulders.

"Oh, yes, Norik. He is quite a sight."

"Indeed, but I wasn't talking about Keetongu."

"The Great Rescue," Vakama realized.

"Yes," Norik confirmed. "And, now we know that the Matoran are in most capable hands. _Your_ hands."

Vakama smiled and nodded, then went toward the ship. "How are we coming, Whenua?" he asked.

"Once Kit, Nokama, and Keetongu get their spheres loaded along with the ones on the conveyer belt, we'll be all set to go," answered the Toa of Earth.

"Good," Vakama nodded, and leaned against the floating floor of the cargo hold.

"Hey, Vakama, what were you and Norik talking about back there?" Onewa asked.

"The Great Rescue," Vakama simply answered.

The Toa of Stone and Air looked at each other, then at the Toa of Fire, then back at each other, and Onewa finally said, "Get 'im!" The two grabbed a surprised Vakama and pulled him in. The next thing the Fire Toa knew, once his back was flat on the floor, Matau pinned his wrists down, then Onewa got on top of his waist and tickled his ribs.

"Oh dear," Kit giggled, watching the scene.

Vakama, meanwhile, tried to plead to Onewa to stop, but found it practically impossible to talk and laugh at the same time and he couldn't wrestle himself out of Matau's grip. And so, he was at the mercy of his brothers.

* * *

A few minutes later, Onewa and Matau were done torturing Vakama and all of the spheres were loaded into all of the airships. In the lead ship, Matau took a seat at the pilot's chair in the cockpit and got the aircraft going. "Next stop, Mata Nui," he announced. On the deck, the rest of the Toa and Kit met eyes with Norik and Keetongu. As Kit waved farewell, Norik extended his staff and Keetongu spread out his arms with a slight bow. The group looked on longingly at the City of Legends as the ships continued on their course.

When they neared the Great Barrier, Onewa leaned on the railing with a start. The protodermis cage where they left Makuta was empty. "The Makuta!" the Stone Toa gasped. "He is gone."

"Not for long," said Vakama in a low tone. "I imagine we'll be seeing him again very soon."

"And, when we do?" asked Nokama.

"We'll find a way to defeat him," replied the Toa of Fire, "because that's what Toa do." Everyone gave either approving smiles or nods; it was good to be a team again.

* * *

Elsewhere, hidden in the tunnels, Darcius stirred. Although, this was not the Darcius that Kit just recently defeated. No, this was the Darcius from the future, the one Kit had chased into the time warp. Realizing he rested longer than he wished, he worked to get back on his feet, knowing he had to work fast. Time was running out; the Toa Metru were now in the tunnels heading for the surface with all of the Matoran from Metru Nui. They were almost successful in completing their mission, something he could not allow to happen.


End file.
